The Art of Babysitting
by Ellsweetella
Summary: Gift for Midstorm. Babysitting shouldn't be too difficult, right?


A/N: This is my gift to the amazing Midstorm! I died when I knew who my santee was! I totally went "Senpai notice meee!" The prompt is: Rumbelle babysitting adventure. I'm not very sure if I did this prompt justice but well, I hope you enjoy it! It has been really fun talking to you and writing this fic!

In this fic, Neal is four months old and Alexandra is two.

….

_Saturday, 1 pm_

The room was a mess.

Syrup coated the curtains, handprints of various colours littered the walls, unidentified mushes on the carpeted floor and two children-the first four months old and the other around two years of age-wailing their lungs out.

Belle thought that she was going to cry.

She pulled something out of her hair-no, she was not going to look-and flung it away.

Tears welled up in her eyes and she bit onto her lower lip, willing herself not to cry. She mustn't cry. She read somewhere that children used adult's expressions to gauge the situation. If she cried now, she was certain that the situation would be ten times worse.

She wiped her face on her sleeves and took a deep breath. She would survive this weekend.

She had to survive this weekend.

….

_Friday, 3 pm._

"Belle, hey!" Mary Margaret caught up with her with a bright smile on her face.

"Mary," Belle returned the smile. There was a glint in Mary's eyes that made Belle weary.

"I am so very sorry but could you babysit Neal for the weekend?"

Belle had been babysitting Neal for quite some time now and a weekend wouldn't make much of a difference. In fact, she rather liked babysitting Neal. She loved children and she needed the practice, when-if-she was pregnant.

Her hand fell to her flat stomach and for a moment, she wished there was a life growing inside of her.

She pushed the thought away from her mind.

"Sure. I am happy to help."

"Thank you," she gushed, giving Belle a small hug before going off.

Just a few hours later, a rather young woman with blonde hair came looking for her.

Belle vaguely remembered seeing her around but she didn't think they had a proper conversation with each other. Belle didn't even know her name.

"Belle?" the woman asked hesitantly.

"Hi. Is there anything I can help you with...?" Belle assumed that the woman needed help finding a book. After all, this was a library.

"I am Ashley. Ashley Bloyd, or Cinderella, or Ella," she started to ramble a little. "Mary told me that you're a wonderful babysitter. Really good with children. So maybe, would you… Babysit Alexandra for me? For the weekend?"

"I-"

"Please," Ashley pleaded. "It's just, well, Sean and I… We really need a vacation. We love Alex, really, but with the jobs and her and..."

Looking at Ashley's wide, pitiful eyes, Belle could not help but to nod. Two toddlers wouldn't be too difficult right?

"Oh thank you," she sighed. "I will drop her off tomorrow at eight?"

"Yes. You're welcome." Belle managed a small smile. Ashley grinned back at her and darts off, leaving a rather stunned brunette behind the counter.

She…

Was she Storybrooke's official babysitter now?

….

Rumplestiltskin pouted. _Pouted._

He pulled her close, his arms wrapping around her waist and his face buried in her hair.

"It's just the weekend," Belle laughed into his chest.

"I want my wife to myself," he murmured, pressing kisses on her head.

Her heart swelled at his words. She was married to Rumplestiltskin. They were married, husband and wife. It felt like a dream. She had yearned for this and she had buried the notion away, believing that it was a silly dream, an impossible fact. She was wrong and here they were, lying together on the bed, with her in his arms. She looked up and kissed his jaw.

"You have me now." She kissed his cheek. "Pressed against you." She kissed his nose. "Naked." She kissed his lips.

"That I do," he murmured against her lips.

"Make use of it then," she pulled away and smiled wickedly, her eyes dark and gleaming with mischief. She got out from his embrace and straddled him instead.

He grinned and pulled his wife down for another kiss, his tongue sweeping over her lips. That smirk she gave was deliciously wicked.

"You have to help," she whispered into his ear before giving it a playing nip.

Oh yes, he was definitely rubbing off her.

…

_Saturday, 8 am_

Mary and Ashley arrived at their doorsteps exactly at eight in the morning with tired grins on their faces. After handing Belle bags of "essentials" and kissing their children good bye, they sped off with relief with murmurings on their lips. Belle caught words about a well deserved massage and a quiet weekend with their husbands.

They deserved a break. Everyone in the town did, especially after a series of unfortunate events. Would there ever be peace in this town?

Belle looked at the toddlers.

Neal was lying in his crib and Alex had found her way onto the couch.

The two toddlers looked up at Belle with innocence written all over their tiny, chubby faces.

It wouldn't be too difficult right? They looked peaceful and cute and innocent, positively harmless. Babysitting Neal had always been a pleasure. Granted, he was alone with her and had no reason to make a fuss.

She looked at the two toddlers and they stared back at her. It was rather unnerving to have two pairs of wide eyes staring at you, their lips trembling.

Oh no.

Please, please don't cry.

Belle sprung to action, grabbing the remote control with her free hand and turning it on. She had preset it to some kids channel that was proven effective in calming the most notorious children down. Or that was what she found out on the internet and various "How to babysit" books.

A soft lullaby played.

The two children visibly relaxed and stared at the screen. It seemed like the dancing, bouncing blob of blue had managed to charm them. They are momentarily silent, their eyes following every little action the blob made. Belle did not know the charm of the blob but she appreciated the power it held over toddlers. The blob was rather hypnotic, Belle admitted. It creeped her out but it worked and she was certain that it was not a magical being, hypnotic or not.

"That _thing_ is creepy," Rumple gave a small laugh and leaned in for a kiss. "Well, I have to leave you with the two children for a bit." He whispered his apologies.

"You're leaving?"

"Sorry sweetheart, I have some _business_ to attend to." There was a brief flicker of darkness before his expression settled once again.

"And I will be here, babysitting," she smiled, her lips stretched thin.

He pressed a final kiss on the top of her head and left.

And she was alone, once more, with two children to care of. Sometimes she wondered if this was some television show and she was some character that appeared when she was useful and shoved back into the background when she was not.

"So, Alex, want to play?" she turned to Alex with a cheerful grin.

She looked at Belle like she was crazy.

…

Belle cracked open an eye.

"Bad!" Alex glared at her with her lips pouted.

Belle snapped her right eye close.

She wondered what was the "surprise" Alex decided to come up with. She couldn't decide if the nervousness she felt was due to excitement or apprehension.

There was some shuffling and a poorly suppressed giggle.

A gurgle.

"Neal, shhh!"

A coo.

"Neal!"

More shuffling.

"Open eyes!"

Belle slowly opened her eyes.

Alex had managed to find almost all of the pillows and blankets the house held and piled them up to create the most comfortable looking ground.

"Are you really two?" Belle playfully asked, eyeing the grinning toddler with suspicion.

"Silly Belle!" Alex giggled, patting Belle's head.

"Play time?" Alex asked.

"Yes, it's play time, Alex," Belle laughed and took Alex's and Neal's toys out of their bags.

Belle carefully put Neal on top of the blankets. She had read that exercise for neck, arms and legs are essential at this stage. She gently took his little legs in her hands and moved them in a cycling motion while cooing at Neal. Smiling, he seemed to enjoy it.

"You like it don't you," Belle couldn't help but to coo and make silly faces at the young baby.

Neal gurgled.

The brightly coloured ball caught his attention. He turned his head and reached for it, his hands failing as the ball moved further away from him. Alex laughed, dangling the ball over Neal's head, tormenting the poor guy.

"Take it Neal," Belle encouraged him. He frowned, his almost non-existent eyebrows furrowed in concentration. With a heave, Neal managed to sit up right and grab the ball, although he did almost fall back at once. Belle managed to support him in time, thanking her quick reflex.

"Belle," Alex tugged at her sleeve. "Can we paint?"

Belle had a feeling it was a very bad idea but she found herself agreeing. Who could ever resist such a cute little toddler?

Alex squealed and head butted Belle's stomach.

...

Note to self: Painting with a two year old is a bad idea.

She cringed as Alex splattered paint all over the paper. Thankfully, she had spread out some newspaper around them.

Or not.

Since Alex had decided that the newspapers were a good canvas. So was the exposed floor next to the newspaper.

Alex squealed in happiness as she streaked the floor a brilliant blue.

She proceeded to flick her brush, sending flecks of red onto the salmon pink walls.

How hard was it to wash off acrylic paint? She knew she shouldn't give Alex acrylic paint but that was all she could find. Now she was regretting it.

"Alexandra," she sighed.

She ignored her and continued working on her masterpiece. She dipped her hand into the bowl of green paint and smeared it on the nearest fabric. Her own shirt. She then decided that it wasn't enough, and smeared red, then blue onto that poor white shirt.

Neal was in his crib, cooing happily at Alex's shenanigans. The more he coos, the more excited she is and the more surfaces are splattered with paint.

Plop.

Alex.

Belle felt her face. Something wet. Something sticky.

She caught her reflection. An orange streak had found it's place on her forehead.

Alex.

She's just two. Just two.

Belle chanted in her mind. She must not be angry. Alex was just two. And Belle was nice. And patient. And smart. She would not be angry at a two year old who decided that smearing paint everywhere was a good idea.

"Alex, why don't we do something else?" Belle asked sweetly, pushing the small annoyance away.

"No," she pouted.

"Alex," Belle warned.

The young child pouted, tears brimming in her wide blue eyes.

"Alex, you can't paint all over the house. You have to paint on the paper I laid out for you. If you can't do that, we have to stop," Belle explained, her voice stern yet kind.

Alex continued her pouting, her eyes dark and stormy with an almost visible cloud of gloom hanging over her head.

Neal, on the other hand, had managed to fall into a deep slumber. Belle envied him.

"Alex, why don't we take a bath? Get ready for lunch?"

Alex paused. Considering Belle's words, her mouth pressed into a thin line. "Spa-ti?" She asked, her eyes narrowing down on Belle's.

"Yes, yes we can have spaghetti. But first we have to clean up and bathe alright?"

Alex gave a small sigh and nodded, thankfully agreeing to Belle's offer. With her two-year-old hands, Alex grudgingly helped Belle to clean up the paint soaked newspapers.

As for the other stains, well, hopefully Rumplestiltskin had some magic to remove the paint stains.

...

Bath time? More like 'let's make Belle wet' time.

Alex had decided that splashing water all over Belle was the most excellent idea she could come up with. Despite Belle's valiant attempts of pleading, begging and commanding, she managed to be completely soaked, with her white blouse sticking uncomfortably against her skin.

Alex was having a ball of the time flapping her hands around, sending water all over the bathroom.

It was fun, sure. Belle could not help but to smile at Alex's laughter. Alex's excitement and happiness were infectious and soon Belle found herself as a willing participant in Alex's water wars.

Once Alex was acceptably clean, Belle dried her and put her in clean clothings.

"Spa-ti?" Alex grinned.

"Soon, sweetheart."

...

_Saturday, 1 pm_

Note to self: spaghetti is not an ideal food choice for a two year old.

Note to self: keep all condiments away from two year olds.

Note to self: especially syrups.

Note to self: four month olds can be terrifying.

She was feeling good about the day.

Alex was finally in clean clothing, Belle's shirt was sufficiently dried, spaghetti was prepared without any fuss and Neal woke up from his small nap happy.

So Belle sat Alex on her high chair and served up a small bowl of cut up.

Alex was being good, slowly eating the food in front of her, as if trying to slowly savour each strand of pasta.

Lunch seemed to be peaceful.

Well that was until Belle decided to turn her back for a moment to pick up the phone.

There was a sickening squelch.

Silence.

Belle spun on her heels, just in time to witness another squirt of golden liquid sticking onto the wall.

"Alex!"

The girl giggled. She grabbed a fistful of pasta and flung it, watching it fly and land on the counter with glee.

"Alex!"

Another squirt. Ketchup coated the table. Hot sauce splattered on the wall.

Oh no. "Alex, stop!" Belle sighed and tried to take the sauces away from her curious hands. Alex growled, glaring furiously at Belle. She hugged the bottles and all Belle could do was watch in horror as the contents spurted out. She pried the bottles away from Alex and placed them high up on the shelves.

"Alex, eat your lunch alright?"

Neal was now wailing, his eyes looking at Alex's plate of food longingly.

"You can't eat that Neal," Belle chuckled. She took out a small container filled with pureed apples. "This, on the other hand is what you can eat."

She scooped some of the purée. "Ahhhh..." Her mouth was stretched out wide, trying to cajole Neal into eating his lunch.

He turned his head away, his face scrunched up in disdain.

"Come on Neal, just one mouth," Belle cooed.

He pressed his lips together.

"Open for the train! Choo Choo!" It was something Belle did not expect she would ever do.

Neal deadpanned, looking at her as if she was mad.

She would be, if this continued.

"Come on Neal. Just a bite?" He reached out and yanked her hair.

"One bite." He pulled.

"Please." Her hair was now in his mouth. She didn't… She had no idea how she should react.

"Let go of my hair?"

He frowned and grabbed another fistful of her hair.

She looked away to check on Alex.

No.

"Alex, how did you get those?" She half shouted. She remembered putting those on the top few shelves.

"Colour!" Syrup and sauces flew all over.

"Alex, out down the bottles."

Alex laughed and flung more spaghetti.

The room was a mess. Food substances stained the walls and formed mushes on the floor.

Neal let out a peal of laughter and decided that he should join in the fun too. And thus, with his young mind, he made the decision to swipe at the bowl Belle had placed on his high chair.

Something stringy and sticky landed on her head.

"Alex! Neal! Stop. No more throwing food."

They promptly burst into tears, as if they had orchestrated the outburst and aimed to create a sound so loud and piercing.

Oh no. Oh no.

Spaghetti was everywhere. Apple purée was everywhere. Orange juice stained the carpet. Coloured handprints were all over the wall. And Belle, poor Belle, had tears in her eyes and her fists clenched.

The wailing continued, without a sign of stopping. It surrounded her, haunted her and made her head throb painfully.

She never expected two children combined would be this... Messy.

And noisy.

She could feel her patience wearing thin.

She pulled something out of her hair-no, she wasn't going to look-and flung it away. Taking in a deep breath, Belle forced her tears away and faced the two toddlers. She could control them. She could be reasonable and nice and control them.

She could and she would. She went to Alex, took away all bottles and food and dumped them in the sink. She found Neal and put him in his crib, where he could not reach for any food substances. She found Alex tottering towards the sink and grabbed her, strapping her to the high chair, which made her cry louder.

Belle found Neal's pacifier and popped it into his open mouth and popped Alex's into hers.

Done. Now they should stop crying as she cleaned up the terrible mess.

They didn't, if you were wondering.

They yelled and kicked, refusing to cooperate. Belle was exhausted, grumpy and definitely not in the mood of cranky children. She was about to do something-anything-to stop the children screams when Rumplestiltskin came in.

He arched an eyebrow, looking rather amused. Belle huffed. It was then did he truly absorb what had conspired in the house.

"Well, condiments are the greatest magic of all," he gave his wife a small smile.

She deadpanned.

"Right. I will clean up and you can… take a bath?" He cautiously stepped towards her and pulled off another strand of spaghetti. "As delicious the pasta looks, I doubt you want them in your hair."

Her lips quirked.

"I'll be back soon," she gave him a quick kiss on his cheeks and disappeared into the bathroom.

He spun to face the still wailing children.

"Now, what do we do with you."

….

Belle had thought that being the more experienced of the two, Rumplestiltskin would be successful in calming the two toddlers down.

Apparently not.

When she stepped out of the bath and went into the living room, she found the two children on top of Rumple, his hair tugged at by the two of them.

He looked absolutely adorable sitting on the couch, stiff as a board as Alex and Neal played with his hair and tugged at his tie.

She never thought that she would see the powerful Rumplestiltskin under the mercy of two young children. There was nothing he could do as they used him as a plaything. Rumple's face was scrunched up in both terror and amusement.

There was nothing Belle could do to suppress the smile. Maybe babysitting wouldn't be too bad with Rumple around. Two adults for two children.

"Let me get you your lunch," Belle smirked and ambled into the kitchen to grab a serving of spaghetti. He takes the plate gratefully, as he shook to the toddlers off. Alex and Neal found their way to Belle, ready for a second bathe in the day.

Belle was starting to question her babysitting abilities.

"Let me help," he offered, setting his lunch aside.

"Are you up for it?" She teased.

"Are you doubting my babysitting abilities, dearie?"

She laughed, clear and sweet.

"Come on Alex, we have to clean you up. Again."

She carried Neal and together with Rumplestiltskin, they disappeared into bathroom.

...

_Saturday, 3 pm_

After a long bath (the two toddlers decided that a soaked Rumple was indeed much more interesting than Belle and made it their bath time mission to douse the fearful looking man with water), they found themselves back at the living room.

There was a quiet peace that settled in the house that Belle desperately cherished.

With Neal in her arms and Alexandra happily snuggled between Rumplestiltskin and Belle, she thought that the peace would last. The room was restored back to its former glory, all thanks to magic and Belle hoped it would stay that way.

She sighed and absentmindedly played with Alex's hair, stifling a yawn.

"I can handle it," Rumple murmured. "You should take a nap."

"I'm fine," she murmured as she tried to stop another yawn.

"You don't have to worry about me."

She hummed in response and waddled off to their bedroom, passing Neal to Rumplestiltskin. He gingerly held the small baby with a small smile on his lips. He could get used to this.

He had forgotten what it was like to hold a child in his arms.

"Play!" Alex commanded, yanking on his hair.

"Yes, yes."

She ran off and lugged over a toy tea set. Was it going in the direction he was thinking of? Yes.

She plopped a tiara on Rumple's head and poured him a cup of imaginary tea. He tentatively took it and pretended to drink from it.

She cleared her throat, as if expecting him to say something. He hesitated, utterly confused.

"Thank you... Your highness?" He managed out.

She studied him before giving a satisfied nod.

It was terrifying how a two year old could intimidate him. To think that she was almost his!

Neal started to cry, trying to demand his share of attention.

Rumple started to rock him, and murmured words of comfort.

"Sing!" Alex requested.

Rumplestiltskin refused.

"Please!"

"Sing for us?" Belle appeared, woken up from her short nap by Neal's wails.

"I don't sing," he sighed.

"Come on Rumple."

"Yea! Come on 'ple!" Alex mimicked Belle, snuggling up to her as she plopped down on the couch.

"Anything for my princesses," he sighed and cleared his throat.

"She left her baby lying here,

Lying here, lying here,

She left her baby lying here

To go and gather blaeberries.

She saw the wee brown otter's track,

Otter's track, otter's track;

She saw the wee brown otter's track,

But she ne'er saw her baby!"

Belle smiled and gently stroked Alex's hair as she listened to the soft, deep crooning of her husband.

Alex sighed contently in her arms and snuggled against Belle, her heavy eyes slowly shutting.

"She's asleep?"

"Mmm hmm. It's been a rather long day after all," she chuckled and put Alex down in her crib. Neal cooed and reached out for Belle. She cradled him in her arms.

"You're wonderful with children," he said warmly.

She huffed. "You've seen the state of the house when you were gone."

"And that was my fault, really. I should have be by your side... Two toddlers are terrifying, especially Alex."

"I can agree with that, although Alex isn't too bad. She's just excited, being away from her parents and all."

Rumplestiltskin shrugged and planted a kiss on her forehead. "You're amazing, pet."

Neal seemed to agree as he cooed in response.

"Let's get you to sleep, shall we?" Belle cooed and dotted Neal's nose.

He stretched his mouth open, eliciting a laugh from Rumplestiltskin.

...

_Sunday 8 pm_

The rest of the time spent babysitting was chaotic at times, despite the fact that both of them were present. Between two needy children who seemed to never run out of energy, they seemed to be spinning in circles. It did not help that Belle was called to the library and Rumple called to help sort out some problems.

More often than not, one of them would be left alone with the two children who transformed into devils once only one adult was in their presence. It felt as though they had an innate ability to realise when they could successfully outnumber and bully the adult into submission.

Rumplestiltskin had lost count of the number of times he had to remove the countless food and paint stains away with magic. All happening under his care. Belle had found a way to control the children ("It's magic you see," she had said with a grin.), and he had found his own way of tiring them out.

Never was their house so loud (it was, just not because of children) and they thought they could get used to it. It felt wonderful to have children around, no matter how crazy things could get.

Mary and Ashley arrived to collect their children exactly on 8, glowing with joy.

"I hope that they didn't cause too much trouble," Mary apologised for the trouble.

"No, not at all," Belle replied with an equally bright smile.

She quickly took out the strand of noodles from Rumplestiltskin's hair.

Rumple grumbled but with a sharp nudge from his wife, he promptly kept quiet.

"Thank you so much Belle," Ashley gave the brunette a small squeeze and as if it was an after thought, she continued, "Mr Gold."

"It was my pleasure," he replied, sounding almost sincere to the untrained ears. But Belle knew that his words were true. He did enjoy babysitting, even if he wouldn't admit it to anyone else.

The minute the children left their hands, the house became unbearably quiet.

"We're alone again," he took the chance to pull his wife into his arms and murmured against her skin.

She hummed, threading her fingers through his hair as his lips moved against her skin.

"Have I told you how good are you with children?"

Her lips lifted.

"It doesn't hurt to hear it again."

"You, my love, are wonderful with children," he grinned.

Looking at him, she had an urge to ask the one question that could lead to a whole new level of awkwardness. The question was lodged painfully in her throat, creating a bitter, rancid burning.

"What is it Belle?"

"Nothing," she smiled at him, pushing back her desire to cry. She cried easily these days but it must be her frustration. "Nothing at all.

He nodded, not quite believing her words.

"Now that we are alone..." His voice was husky and his eyes dark with lust. "How about..." He trailed off, his arms coiling around her waist and his mouth on her neck.

She smirked and pulled away. Swaying her hips, she made sure that he got a good view of her as she sashayed into their bedroom.

"Coming Rumple?"

She was certain that the topic of having children would be brought up soon, when they were both certain they were ready, when he was ready.

And that day might be much sooner than she thinks it might be.


End file.
